Quick release tourniquet carrier

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 17/929,292, which itself claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application No. 63/239,527 filed Sep. 1, 2021. The entire contents of the above applications are hereby incorporated by reference as though fully set forth herein.

The present invention relates in general to the field of tactical gear. More specifically, the present invention relates to a personal tourniquet carrier that allows for quick access.

Tourniquets are often carried on-person in tactical and survival circumstances to quickly stop or slow traumatic bleeding immediately after injury and before the injured person may receive complete medical care. Tourniquets are intended to be used either by the injured party or to aid someone else. They are typically lightweight, portable, and accessible for fast deployment. This function is critical for military, law enforcement personnel, first responders and in survival circumstances where the potential for serious injury is high and access to medical treatment is very limited.

For example, military personnel are typically provided tourniquets during times of military deployment. Such tourniquets are often strapped to the outside of a uniform or carried in a backpack. The soldier must rush to access the tourniquet as fast as possible when someone is seriously injured and begins bleeding traumatically. However, current carrying means often render the tourniquet useless because it cannot be accessed and applied fast enough to save an injured person's life. A severed limb may cause one to bleed to death in less than ten seconds, often before a tourniquet can be unstrapped or withdrawn from a backpack and then applied to the limb.

Another shortfall of a typical tourniquet is it is one more piece of equipment that a solider or enforcement officer must remember to attach to a uniform or pack in a backpack. Therefore, it may be inadvertently left behind during times of high stress and rapid combat deployment.

Current tourniquet carriers are typically made of a plate or holster which is strapped or clipped to a person's belt. The tourniquet is inserted into the holster or strapped to the plate and held fast with one or more elastic cords or straps. To remove the tourniquet, the user must remove the cords or straps and pull the tourniquet from the plate or holster. This often requires two or more steps when time is critical.

Removal of the tourniquet may be frustrated and delayed if the attachment cords are improperly attached or twisted. The attachment cords or straps may also get stuck when the user attempts to remove them. On the other hand, the cords or straps might break or detach during rigorous activity, which may cause the user to lose the tourniquet.

There will always be a need for faster deployment of a tourniquet to increase the chance of survival when severe injuries happen. Every second is critical. Accordingly, there is a need for a tourniquet carrier that incorporates a quick-release mechanism which allows the tourniquet to be deployed and ready for use in a single, fluid motion.

The present invention is a quick-release tourniquet carrier that provides an individual with the necessary means to immediately access and deploy a tourniquet in emergency situations. The innovative design of the carrier includes a tourniquet case and an elastic compression band attached to a mounting plate which is attached to the user. The tourniquet is placed within the case, which comprises at least two separate pieces. The case is closed and then slipped into the compression band, which squeezes the case to hold it together and in the ready position. To deploy the tourniquet, the user pulls one of two ripcords attached to the ends of the tourniquet. The case breaks apart immediately as it exits the compression band, thereby allowing for immediate use of the tourniquet.

10 20 30 40 20 21 22 22 10 1 FIG. 2 FIG. 2 FIG. The present invention includes a tourniquet carriercomprising a mounting plate, a compression band, and a case, as shown inand. In a preferred embodiment, the mounting plateincludes a strapand a fastener, depicted in. Although the preferred embodiment of fasteneris a standard snap to secure carrierto a person or other tactical gear, other types of releasable fasteners known in the prior art may be used, such as hook and loop fasteners, a button or a clip.

20 21 3 FIG. Mounting platemay be comprised of any durable material such as a lightweight plastic polymer commonly used with tactical gear. Strapshown inis universal and may be comprised of a durable, pliable material, and operable to attach to a belt or external gear.

30 20 40 50 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 60 50 40 60 60 50 2 FIG. 9 FIG. 6 FIG. 10 FIG. Compression bandis attached to mounting plateby any typical means, such as stitching as shown inand. Caseis hollow and is designed to house a tourniquet. In one embodiment, casecomprises lid portion, recessed interior cavity, grooves, base portion, tabsand aperture openings, as shown inand. A ripcordis attached to each end of tourniquet. In the preferred embodiment, Caseis made from a rigid material; however, many variations in materials may allow for full operability. Although the preferred embodiment of ripcorduses hook and loop fasteners. i.e. VELCRO®, to secure ripcordto tourniquet, any other type of fastener known in the prior art may be used.

60 50 50 44 60 46 41 44 45 43 41 44 41 44 40 30 4 FIG. 5 7 FIGS.- 10 FIG. To prepare the tourniquet for deployment, ripcordsare directly or indirectly coupled to tourniqueton ether end as shown in. Tourniquetis then placed in base portionsuch that ripcordsextend through aperturesas shown inand. Lid portionis then placed onto base portionsuch that tabsare aligned with and fit inside corresponding groovesto form interlocking connections, which restrict lateral movement of lid portionand base portionthereby preventing them from sliding apart. As a result, lid portionand base portionare held in alignment when caseis inserted into compression band.

43 45 41 44 41 44 43 45 41 44 7 10 FIGS.and However, groovesand tabsare configured such that they do not form a perpendicular locking connection which holds lid portionand base portiontogether. Lid portionand base portionare not held against each other in a perpendicular direction, but they will not slide apart in a lateral direction. See. Instead of groovesand tabs, other means to create a lateral locking configuration such as offsetting partial lips of lid portionand base portion.

50 44 41 44 45 43 40 44 20 40 20 30 40 40 30 10 FIG. 1 FIG. In operation, tourniquetis placed into base portion. Lid portionto base portionby inserting tabsinto groovesas explained above and shown in. With casein the closed configuration, the user places base portionagainst mounting plateand slides caselongitudinally along mounting plateand into compression band, which stretches over caseas shown in. Caseis preferably situated such that approximately equal portions of each end protrude from compression band.

30 40 40 30 30 40 30 30 40 20 40 Compression bandcomprises an elastic material which does not impose a substantial friction force against case. The absence of friction allows the user to slip caseinto compression banddespite the compressive force that compressive bandapplies to case. Compression bandmay be fabricated from any typical material with elastic properties; however, a durable material such as polyester may be preferred. Compression bandis configured such that sufficient compressive force is applied to hold caseagainst mounting plateduring rigorous movement. However, it is intended that an adult person of average strength will be able to overcome the said compressive force to load and deploy case.

6 FIG. 10 FIG. 1 FIG. 41 42 42 50 42 40 42 50 50 42 10 42 30 30 42 40 20 As shown inand, a preferred embodiment of lid portioncomprises a recessed interior cavityconfigured to roughly conform to the shape of a tourniquet. Recessed interior cavityprovides several benefits. Tourniquetrests within recessed interior cavitywhen caseis in the closed position. The shape of recessed interior cavitycreates a tight fit over tourniquet, which prevents movement of tourniquetand eliminates rattle. Recessed interior cavityalso reduces the overall size of carrier. The shape of recessed interior cavitycreates a protruding, multi-planar surface over which compression bandfits as shown in. Compression bandstretches around and conforms to the protrusion created by recessed interior cavity, which and helps secure caseto mounting plate.

10 21 50 60 40 30 40 30 41 44 50 50 In a preferred embodiment, carrieris removably attached to the user with strapin a location which may be quickly and easily reached by hand, such as the waist. To deploy tourniquet, the user grips either of ripcordsand pulls with sufficient force to extract casefrom the grip of compression band. When caseexits compression band, lid portionand base portionwill split apart from one another due to gravitational force, thereby freeing tourniquetfor immediate use. The time needed to access tourniquetis reduced compared with other tourniquet carriers known in the art, which typically require the user to fumble with multiple elastic cords or straps which are subject to snagging or slippage when pulled upon.

For the purposes of promoting an understanding of the principles of the invention, reference has been made to the preferred embodiments illustrated in the drawings, and specific language has been used to describe these embodiments. However, this specific language intends no limitation of the scope of the invention, and the invention should be construed to encompass all embodiments that would normally occur to one of ordinary skill in the art. The particular implementations shown and described herein are illustrative examples of the invention and are not intended to otherwise limit the scope of the invention in any way. For the sake of brevity, conventional aspects of the device (and components of the individual operating components of the system) may not be described in detail. Furthermore, the connecting lines, or connectors shown in the various figures presented are intended to represent exemplary functional relationships and/or physical or logical couplings between the various elements. It should be noted that many alternative or additional functional relationships, physical connections or logical connections may be present in a practical device. Moreover, no item or component is essential to the practice of the invention unless the element is specifically described as “essential” or “critical”. Numerous modifications and adaptations will be readily apparent to those skilled in this art without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention.